Any Benefits to Hardcore Mode? CONVERSATION - Help/Tips

I changed the name so people read through this thread to get a little idea about HC =]

Update: Hey guys since I made this thread and that was awhile ago, I have had one Hardcore character from the start, I have a Monk level 39 so far on Act 2 of Nightmare mode, its good to see people interested in talking to each other on the thread so I'll keep it alive as much as I can =]

Update 2: I have sad news =[ since last night my all so close level 42 Monk died in a 4 player co-op, in act 2 of nightmare mode, we was playing a DH and a Wiz, it went perfectly fine, we was all the same level, and we did good together, THEN one of them invited there level 46 barbarian... who just rushed everything, I kept saying I don't like the idea this random guy friend of yours just rushes everything, so 40mins later or so, entered the dungeon to find erm, I can't remember his name but you need to find his head in one of the caves, there was 2! Boss types in one little area, with a heck ton of skeletons and guardians, two of the boss/rare types had well one had wall and immunity shield, and the other had teleport (teleport to them) and freeze ball thing that makes you freeze... That combo my friends... killed me and my friend who was a wizard all because this damn barbarian guy ran in like a fool and attracted them all onto the bridge, getting us stuck on a small ramp from walls and freeze, they freezed us one, I was able to pull one heal off while trying to run.. but because of the walls it was hard to even move, then there was the freeze YET again and after that, I was dead in seconds.. so was my friend who played the wizard... so that's my sad story over =[

As the title says, is there any benefits, I tried to look on the Diablo 3 wiki but not really enough info yet, they said stuff about unlocking Banner icons and that is about it, and I heard about about the leaderboard what seems cool, but what about anything else? Thanks =]

EDIT: Thanks guys for all the replies, sorry been busy with the game and real life so kind of hard to check everything out at once! But I completed Act 1 sad times ='[ anyways, I made a Wizard and got to level 14 with him, then stopped and made a Monk and got to level 14 again and that is my main for now for Hardcore, I love it yet I know anytime soon I could die, its so cool but yet scary at the same time, so thanks for all the replies :D

And to this message before, I was only asking because I played Diablo 2 and there wasn't much added for Hardcore mode other than well, death. But I just wanted to know IF there was anything apart from Achievements and the thrill, that is all, thanks for the comment anyways.

What I am about to say is not meant to be insulting, but to be taken as pure wisdom.

If you have to ask what the positive reasons are for playing hardcore, then you should not be playing hardcore.

That is all.

Edit: The username Revzo that I used to comment is my Guest account so I could play with my girlfriend to show her Diablo lol, it said my name at the top so I thought it was my main account haha, my bad, but never mind :D

HC makes the game more enjoyable for the masochists who play it. There is no extra reward for your death pain except that every moment up until you die you feel more alive and more involved in every mouse click.

If your playing diablo to amass loot and access the end game content asap SC will get you there faster but if you wanna do it and feel stupidly proud then the only way is HC.

no all hardcore means is very simple. if you die, you have to restart.

same game same loot, same random mobs... you just get 1 life.

Not quite, in my puny 11 levels as a Wizard, i noticed new mini-areas and loot, even a lore item i never saw before. And this was just in the starting zones (cemetery of the whatever).Not to mention seeing 3 yellows drop from the witch king, i mean arthas, i mean, oh gosh... That guy, the boss. lol

When I lost my first HC it was at level 20 and my cry of F*** could be heard for a block. What I learned was that when you make a HC character you should bid goodbye to it in that instant when it's first made, they're born to be wasted.

I love hardcore because it makes the game more exciting and you care about "now" rather then "when i get to 60 i will farm for that rare thing". A SC rusher would never bother to care about gear while levling.I care about my gear every step of the way, i go to every random mini dungeon and explore every area fully to get a bit more xp before the next step and i'm genuinly happy for every upgrade i find on the way.